Playing dirty
by Zeldafan29
Summary: Ralph is captured and thrown head first into Castle rock. He is shortly met by the Chief- Jack Merridew, whose previous choices demands he eliminate the fair haired boy or face being caught out by Roger. Knowing he cannot fulfill his promise, he must find a way to usurp the terror with help from Ralph himself. Slow burn Jack/Ralph


**Summary - Ralph is captured and thrown head first into Castle rock. **

**I do not own anything - but this story of course. **

**Pairing; Eventual Jalph.**

**Chapters? - I am planning for this to have 10 chapters.**

* * *

**Chapter 1: Prologue**

Ralph had become accustomed to the life he was currently forced to live. Hide, get food, eat, sleep and repeat. Ever since the day of the great fire, his life has consisted of nothing more than hiding in fear. Fear of being found by one of Merridew's hunter's. Or worse, the black cap himself.

Simon and Piggy. They were truly special, truly deserved better. Simon was only young, but he was full of life, full of wisdom and knowledge. And yet he was killed for such a simple mistake. The darkness of man's heart. Piggy? He was disposed of shortly after and that was when the nightmare began. The hunter's had set the whole island on fire to lure him out, causing him to run to beach. At this point he was sure he was done for, he was certain that his life was hanging by a thin thread and once the tribe caught up to him, Jack himself would plunge his spear right through him.

It was strange how it ended. The finale was very drastic, yet very puzzling. Ralph hid amongst the bushes, crouched lowly in the divot of sand. The fire was becoming unbearable, it smoked him out like he was a fox being hunted by a poacher. In the end, he was forced to retreat from his spot of hiding, it was then that Jack himself spotted him and alerted his hunters to chase him, chase him wildly down to the shores of the silver sands, the waves gushing back and forth. Near the edge, it was just his luck that he skidded forward and tumbled head first onto the sands.

Instinctively, he picked himself up and skidded behind this conveniently large rock embedded into the ground. Still, it was likely his exhausted breathes would give away his position and he would be found. He would be found and brutally forced to either join them or die. He remembered squatting, shivering fervently with the weight of death crowding in on him. Like a house of cards, his whole world came crashing down. That was when he heard footsteps drawing nearer, strangely only few. He was assuming it would've been a collective amount, he would hear the clash and stomping of all the boys, rampaging forward with a lust for blood.

He looked up, biting his lips anxiously. There above him stood the black cap himself, his gorgeous fiery hair draping down from his head. Look's as though he had found a way to cut it since it was just the length of his ears. Ralph went into panic mode, he was dead, deader than dead. The red head peered down in his direction and widened his eyes, smirking immediately. Ralph shivered, waiting for him to get yanked up onto his feet. He waited and waited and waited, the clouds unexpectedly pouring rain down onto them, the waves of the sea barking onto the shore, causing the silver sands to turn grey. The bitterness of the cold pellets fell harshly onto the two boys as Jack leaned down, his bony body contorting. He put a slim finger to his mouth, hissing a "_shhhh_" noise.

And with that he fled the scene, the remains of his black cloak blowing in the air, leaving him alone. Ralph was heavy with bewilderment, why didn't he kill him or at least summon his cult tribe over in his direction to handle him. By the time he had the courage to emerge from the scene, the hunter's and Jack had disappeared. Ralph took a deep breath, crawling out from behind the rock still traumatized. Had _Jack Merridew_ just spared him?

* * *

_**At Castle rock. One week later.**_

"What do you mean he wasn't there?" Roger barked, furiously, pacing up and down the base. His blood was boiling, his black locks sticking up sorely. He was desperate to eliminate Ralph once and for all, and so to hear that he had come back empty handed was a huge disappointment.

The chief rolled his eyes, "Calm down," he ordered. "We will hunt him down tomorrow, but for now I must feast." Sitting on his _throne_ he turned his head to see Sam'n'eric stood firmly in the corner of the hideout, picking at their nails.

The chief beckoned them over, "You two, go fetch us some pig, would you?" he demanded coldly, his freckled face scrunched up bitterly. The skittish boys nodded without hesitation, scurrying out of view to fulfill the chief's wishes.

Roger still red hot stomped towards Jack, anger in his eyes. He had quite enough of his leader's leniency, if it were him he would have left no stone on turf, allow no feast to ensue until Ralph's head was mounted on a stick and left for the flies to consume. _That_ would be his way of doing things. Instead, he was ordered around by a softy who's only priority 24/7 was to either feast or hunt. For the most part he agreed with him, hunting was incredibly fun and satisfying. It was exactly what he needed to curb his sadistic pangs. But then when it came to tracking down Ralph, changing the subject was his motto.

It would go like- "_Chief, when are we next planning our attack on Ralph?" Roger would eagerly await an answer, preparing his spear to be sharpened at both ends. _

Jack would reply, _"Not really in the mood to hunt him down, fetch me some meat, would you?"_

He grew tired of excuses, the longer they delayed this pursuit, the better chance of someone coming to rescue them. He could see it now, an officer arriving on the island, questioning Ralph to no end. They would all be locked up if Ralph so much as opened his mouth, sprouting the truth about Simon and Piggy's death. They would be held responsible.

"Jack," Roger said firmly, gnashing his teeth together. The Chief rolled his eyes once more, eyeing up the emo boy who looked like he was about to burst with frustration. "Why should Ralph be allowed to roam freely? Aren't you thinking that we could be rescued, what do you think would happen then? Do you think he will lie for us, for _you_?" He interrogated him, heatedly. Jack bit his lip, he was hoping Ralph would find it his heart to lie for him. "You really have turned soft." he snarled. "He will tell on us, and then we're all done for. Don't you get it?! We need to kill him!" He raised his voice, edging towards Jack menacingly. "We need to kill that scum, right now. Then at least if we do get rescued, we will blame his death and Simon and fatty's death as an accident."

While Roger was only spelling it out in black, Jack knew he could never kill him. He could press on and assure them that he would do it, but it would never get done. Jack got up from his seat and shot a nasty glare at Roger. How dare he question him, how dare he talk about Ralph in such a way? He collided with his shoulder when trudging past him, giving him one last death stare before exiting Castle rock.

Roger followed suit, still not letting the matter rest. There had to be a logical reason as to why he was stalling, a reason as to why he was delaying Ralph's demise and he was determined to find out what it was.

* * *

**Back at the beach- the same day.**

Ralph sat unsure at the bottom of the beach, cradling his legs all wimpy and sorry for himself. He couldn't help but wonder why Jack had saved him- or at least spared him for the minute. Maybe he was tired, maybe he couldn't be bothered or maybe he didn't want to be held accountable for his death and was heading back to send Roger after him. That would be his worst nightmare. Roger - the terror. That's what all the other boy's had referred him as.

He tried to think positively, perhaps Jack had truthfully wanted to spare him. Maybe he didn't want to kill him. He heaved a sigh, brooding over his thoughts. He fingered the berries placed beside him, picking them up and putting them in his mouth. He realised that whatever his intentions were, good or bad. He would eventually be killed regardless. He knew that what Roger was like, he knew that once he sought out to kill him, he wouldn't rest until he was dead.

Ralph shook his head in disbelief, "_This can't be how it goes, right? There has to be a better ending than this..." _he wondered, tearing up a little.

How would his Mum react? Would she ever be able to accept his death? Then again where was she and his dad doing right now? He had been on this island an awful long time and he hadn't spotted a ship go past for months it seemed. Not that he really knew how long had passed, but long enough for his hair to need cutting using the sharp end of a rock.

He sighed for a final time before getting up off the sand, dusting the remaining grains off of himself. Cautiously, he tiptoed back to the demolished huts and proceeded to try and mend at least one of them. It was dark and his eyes were sagging noticeably. He yearned to sleep, even if it meant he was extremely vulnerable for a few hours. If the hunters came, he wouldn't be awake to try and fend them off, instead he would be dragged out, obligated to wake up. That would be where the sheer panic would set in, where his muscles would still be waking up and he wouldn't be able to fight them.

Or worse, maybe they would kill him in his sleep. Now that was terrifying to even think about. Going to sleep, only never waking up. Would he be able to feel the pain? Who knows. Ralph scuffed his feet along the sands, choosing the hut most concealed by the trees looming over it. What if the tree fell on him in a stormy night? God he wasn't thinking straight.

It didn't take long to fix the shelter. He propped it up nicely, weaving the vines together tightly to secure the wood into place. He hopped inside shortly, yawning once he lay down. He hadn't imagined in his life he would be sleeping in a rugged shelter, made from wood and leaves and vines. Constantly living in fear of being killed by school boys his own age, some younger. If this was a normal day, he would be in school or if it were a weekend he would meet with his friends or attend horse riding lessons as he did every Sunday. How funny to think that Jack, his best friend at one point would be the one he was running from.

The one who wanted him dead.

Ralph shut his eyes. For a few hours, all he wanted was peace and quiet. A few hours to regain some of his strength. He knew he was done for anyway, lying would be to say he wasn't scared. Course he was scared, who wouldn't be? But at this point it was a game of cat and mouse, and the late stages of one too. He knew he would be caught and murdered, it was all a waiting game really. For the past week he hadn't cared for living anymore. His friends had turned on him, Simon and Piggy (who were his true friends), were dead. Then the fire, oh the stupid fire.

All he planned to do was keep a signal fire going until a ship spotted it and voila! Rescued easy peasy. But the rest of them grew bored of keeping the fire going and crucial timing too since a ship sailed past but because there was no fire, no one aboard could know they needed rescuing.

Ralph turned on his side and tried to brush his thoughts out of his head. He wanted sleep and he needed it now.

* * *

**Castle rock**

"If you won't do it, I will!"

Jack faced to turn Roger, for the third time today rolling his eyes in annoyance.

"I told you Rog', we are feasting first," he reminded him. "It's late and I really can't be bothered, tomorrow on the other hand," he raised an eyebrow, hoping Roger would drop the issue.

"No!" he growled. "We've wasted too much time and I'm sick and tired of you making these fairy ass excuses as to why you don't want to kill him. You like him, don't you?" he hissed, jabbing a finger to Jack's bare chest. "You fancy him, don't you?" he repeated gruffly, this time shoving him backwards with intensive force.

Jack had quite enough of Roger's input today. Kindly, he thrashed his foot onto Roger's, shoving him away like he was nothing. He wasn't sure how the terror would react, he was no match to Roger.

"You dare make such accusations against your Chief?" he bellowed, his face hot without silliness. He brushed his fringe out of his eyes and watched his new found prey like a hawk. There was no way he could let his guard down, the only way he could escape his fate would be to deny and comply. If he for one second showed sign of weakness, it would reveal to him for certain that he did in fact have feelings for Ralph.

Ever since he had met him on the first day of school.

He had to keep it simple, keep this act up for a little while longer. He needed more time. If he could talk with Ralph, they could come up with a plan together to stand up to Roger. He was the only one who was a threat, the other hunters were needy and did whatever he said without question. Roger on the other hand was strong, he could easily take him out with one stab of his spear. He was insane. If it weren't for him he wouldn't have needed to pretend to hate Ralph or have driven down this dark route.

Since they were on a secluded island with no bossy adults, Jack could tell Ralph how he felt without the rough consequences. But since Roger was surveying his every move, that wasn't exactly an option. He had to go.

Jack had an idea. It hit him like a boulder, if he could go alone right now to "_capture_" Ralph he could spill the details and the two of them could think of a plan to usurp Roger. Would it work? Probably not. Would they even be able to think of a plan? Not a chance. Did he want to do it anyway? Hell yes.

"Alright then," Jack folded his arms crossly. "We will kill him now."

Roger leaped up from the floor and nodded maliciously. He was eager to tear him apart, the anticipation was killing him. Roger opened his mouth, readily hoping he would be the one to go and find him, drag him back here and torture him before finally killing him. Oh sweet revenge. Roger turned to leave, he didn't need to wait for Merridew's approval.

"Not so fast."

Roger reluctantly halted. What was the problem now?

"You need to stay here, keep things in line. Ralph is my enemy and I want to be the one to get him."

Roger couldn't believe it. What was his problem, why did it matter who went and got him?

With that, the black cap raced out into the night to find him. As the darkness consumed him, he ran as fast as could away from the terror and down to the jungle. This island was small so there wasn't really anywhere he could hide. Besides, it was Ralph. He wouldn't have the brains to think of anywhere extravagant to hide. He tried to structure his breathing so he could make it down without needing time to rest.

Ralph was his only hope.

And he was Ralph's only hope too...

* * *

AN- End of chapter

More to come ;)

-J


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